September 21, 2008

The 1st Annual Clare Harvest Banquet was a huge success. I joined Head Chef Jim O’Brien from Kinsale and my friend Pete from Connemara and together with a pastry chef and volunteers we created a spectacular feast for 300 guests from only foods grown and produced in Co. Clare. My recipe for the vegetarian entree of Stuffed Cabbage leaves is filed under Recipes. Enjoy!

For the Clare Banquet I used Greyhound cabbage. It gets it’s name because the shape is similar to a greyhounds head. It is softer and whiter than the typical green cabbage commonly grown here (like the one on the cover of Coming Home To Cook.) Either is good for this recipe. Since I could only use ingredients grown in Co. Clare I stewed or steamed all the vegetables, no sauteing as there is no oil.

Steam 6 large cabbage leaves, set aside to cool

Dice the following and mix together:

1 large onion, diced

3 leeks, chopped 4 cloves 2 cloves garlic, mined 1 large courgette (zucchini) , chopped 3 peeled carrots , chopped 2 stalks celery ,chopped 10 runner beans (or any green bean) cut into 1/2 inch pieces In a heavy bottomed stock pot add all of the above veg to 2 cups of water or vegetable stock. Add sea salt, mix together and cook on low heat until vegetables begin to soften. Take off of the heat and set aside. Wash, dice and steam 6 waxy potatoes, set aside and cool. When cooled, add to veg mixture. Grate 2 cups of hard cheese – I used a mixture of Burren Gold with fennel and fenugreek. In a food processor put 2 eggs, 1/2 cup cream and 1 lb. of soft cheese. I used soft goat cheese but you can use farmers cheese or cream cheese, too. Add sea salt and a mixture of chopped herbs, like thyme, oregano, dill andfennel. Here’s the fun part: I bought live sea grass from the winkle man in Kilrush. It was fresh when I bought it (2 weeks before I used it). The instructions were to watch it and when the shells opened, remove them. They opened in 10 days and then it started drying out. On the day I used it, I soaked it in water, drained it and saved the water, which is a good thickener. So, if you don’t live near a winkle man or can’t find sea grass (it’s seasonal) get dried sea weed and soak. Boil 1 gallon of water . Immerse 12 ripe tomatoes. The skins will begin to come off in less than a minute. Immerse immediately in a bowl of cold water and gently peel off skins. In a stock pot cook the tomatoes, 2 cloves chopped garlic, a handful of chopped basil and sea salt. When the tomatoes are cooked down and soft, ,take off heat and puree in a food processor or blender.

Lay out the cabbage leaves , In the middle of the leaf spread a spoonful of soft goat cheese, top with a dollop of vegetable mixture. Add a sprig of sea grass. Roll leaf so that it folds together, keeping mixture tightly inside. Place in a casseroloe pan, that has been filled with a 1/4 inch of tomato sauce. Drizzle more sauce over leaves, top with grated hard cheee and bake for 30 minutes in a 180 (350) degree oven.